Fastening for attache and suit cases and the like



June 27, 1939.

c. w. CHENEY FASTENING FOR ATTACHF: AND SUIT CASES AND THELIKE Filed Feb. 24, 19:57

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 CharlesWHh qm clqene IMVEN M v h y,

June 27, 1939. -c. w. CHENEY FASTENING FOR ATTACHE AND SUIT CASES AND. THE LIKE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 24, 1937 Charms W lmer Chenm RQW o T L ma m Patented June 27, 1939 PATENT OFFICE FASTENING FOR ATTAOHE AND sm'r CASES AND THE" LIKE Charles William Cheney, Soho, Birmingham,

England Application February 24, 1937 Serial No. 127,422

' In Great Britain February'26, 1936 4 Claims.

The invention relates to fastenings for attache and suit cases and the like of the kind comprising two main members, the one a hasp usually fixed to the hinged lid of the case, and the other a lock or latch, hereinafter referred to as a lock, usually fixed to the body of the case.

The invention provides a construction of such fastenings whereby hand-release of the hasp from the catches 'of the lock also starts positive disengagement of the hasp from said look, so that the lid of the case is partially opened.

The invention also provides a construction of such fastenings whereby on putting the hasp into engagement with the look, as on closing. the lid, the lock catches are positively moved by the hasp into engagement with itself, the complete engagement being afterwards effected by a spring applied to the lock.

The lock catches are pivoted ones, and sometimes a pair is used, and sometimes a single one, said catches being withdrawn to release and eject the hasp either by a revolublemovement of a hand-operated member of the lock or by a sliding movement of a hand-operated member.

The drawings forming part hereof illustrate the invention in five formsdifi'ering only in constructional details, all having the same essential features in combination. 1

Fig. l is a section with the hasp and lock in engagement.

Fig. 2 is a back view of Fig. 1 with the back plate of the lock removed.

Fig. 3 is a front view of the hasp Figs. 1 and 2.

Fig. 4 is a front view of the lock Figs. 1 and 2.

Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation of another form of hasp.

Fig. 6 is a back view of a lock to be used with the hasp Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is an elevation of a further form of hasp.

Fig. 8 is an end view of Fig. '7

Fig. 9- is a back view of a lock to'be used with the hasp Figs. '7 and 8.

Fig. 10 is a section of Fig. 9.

Fig. 1 is a front view of another form of hasp.

Fig. 12 is an end view of Fig. 11.

Fig. 13 is a front elevation'of a lock to be used with the hasp Figs. 11 and 12.

Fig. 14 is a view of Fig. 13 with the front part of the casing removed.

Fig. 15 is a back view of a still further form of hasp.

Fig. 16 is a side view of Fig. 15.

Fig. 17 is a view of the lock to be u ed with the hasp Figs. 15 and 16, 4

A Fig. 18 is a section of Fig. 1'7 on the dotted lines Where permissible the same letters of reference are used'in all the figures of the drawings.

With reference to Figs. l-4, a; is the hasp to be *5 fixed to the hinged lid of the attache case, and c is the lock to be fixed to the body of said case.

The hasp comprises an attachment plate a2, provided with alug a3 with which the pivoted catches, hereinafter described, engage :10

The lock c has a casing provided by a back plate '02, a front box'o3 open at top 04 and closed at sides 05, c5, and bottom 06. A knob d is fixed to the face of the'front box 03 by clinchings at 412. A ring e ismounted upon this knob to re- 15 volve against the face of the front box, having a handle e2 to grip it, and'being provided with a stud e3 which projects through an arcuate slot 64' in the face of said front box 03 into the interior of the casing. 20

A slidablemember f is fitted within the front box 03 to lie between said box and the back plate 02. This member has rigid sides f2, f3, and a rigid upper wall It, being open at its back, and formed at I5 with a straight crossing slot to be engaged by the stud all on the ring e.

Two catches g and h are pwoted' to the top of the slidable member'f by the two pivoting pegs g2, h2, each being fitted with a torsional spring 2' to normally swing it outwardly, as shown in Fig. 4 when clear of the sides of the front box 03. Said slide also carries a rigid peg 7 upon which a torsional spring 7'2 is mountedfor its one limb 9'3 to operate against the side of the slide, and its other limb i4 against the stud e3. Said slidable member f is moved vertically in the front box by the ring e, the spring'jz, andby the hasp a, as will be hereinafter described, guided during its movement by the sides of said front box.

It is a notched gap in the slidable member f, 40 and 762 indicates a slidable locking bolt adapted to be operated by a key working on the key peg k3. In locking position, the stump M of the slide bolt k2 engages the sidenotch of the gap k for key locking the slidable member with its 5 cathes g, h in engagement with the hasp, and in unlocking position, as shown in Fig. 2, the stump is free of" the gap so that the slidable member can move. The key peg k3 and the slide bolt k2 are shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2', because: these elements are mounted on. the back plate 02 which is removed in this figure.

The drawings show that the stud e3 is carried by the ring e; that the arcuate slot e4 is formed in the face of the front box 03; that the straight crossing slot f5 is formed in the slidable member I; and that the pivoted catches g, h, and the torsional spring 7'2 are carried by said slidable member, and that this slidable member also carries the rigid upper wall f4 which constitutes a push wall.

Now assuming the hasp Fig. 3 is put into engagement with the lock Fig. 4, the catches g and h being open, the lug a3 presses against the rigid upper wall f4 of the slidable member to force said slidable member downwardly. This causes the ring e to be partly revolved and the catches g, h, to gradually close in by pressure of their backs against the side walls of the front box 03, so that said catches gradually swing over the lug 0.3 to automatically secure the hasp to the lock, the movement being aided and completed by the torsional spring i2.

To disengage the hasp from the lock the ring e is hand moved from its position Fig. 2' to its position Fig. 4. This action positively lifts the slidable member together with the hasp and the catchesuntil said catches are clear of the sides c5, c5, of the front box, when said catches automatically swing clear of the lug a3, enabling the hasp a to be entirely removed by wholly lifting the hinged lidto which it is attached; it being clear that during the first movement the disengagement of the hasp from the lock has been started by positive pressure of the rigid upper wall f4 against the underside of the lug a3, with the result that the lid is partially opened during the release of thehasp. I

In Figs. 5 and 6, the catches g and h are carried by the slidable member 1, but a fixed stud l is provided upon the front box 03 to automatically swing the catches outwardly when the slidable member I is lifted, an inclined edge 12 on each of the catches co-operating against the sides 05, c5, of the front box to close inwardly thecatches when pressure is applied against the upper ends thereof by the lug a3, a part of which lug is constituted by a stud in around which the catches close for fastening the hasp to the lock.

In Figs. 7-10 a single pivoted catch g is provided to close onto the lug 13 of the .hasp a, this catch being carried by a slidable member I and having a torsional spring i to normally swing it outwardly.

With reference to Figs. 11-14 two pivoted catches g and h are provided upon the back plate 02 of the lock casing, to be wholly located within the casing, the lug a3 of the hasp a entering said casing at the edge opening 11., and operating against the parts 0 of the catches to automatically rock the latter for their engagement with the lug, the completion of the engagement being through the limb spring q also disposed within the casing, this spring completing each movement of the catches, and holding them in such positions. The two catches a, h, are moved to release the lug a3 of the hasp by hand operation towards each other of the two slidable fingers grips r and s applied to the face of the front box 03, these two finger grips connecting with the two catches at T2, 32. In this form of the invention, as also in all the forms of the inven tion previously described, there is still the positive start of the disengagement of the hasp from the lock from hand operation of the catches to release, and also the positive start of the engagement through downward pressure of the hasp lug 113.

With reference to Figs. 15-18, a hasp a of the known hinged kind carries upon it a rigid loop a4 (corresponding to the lug a3). The lock 0 has a front opening t for the loop to pass through into the lock casing, and the latter is provided with a single pivoted catch g formed with an inclined nose 93 to engage the loop and with an inclined push-out abutment 94 to contact the exterior of the loop, a spring q completing the movement of the catch in its two directions. If the loop a4 is pushed through the opening 15 from the front of the casing, as would be the case in closing the hasp, the back of the loop a4 presses against the inclined abutment g4, and thereby rocks the catch so that its inclined nose 93 will be moved into engagement with the loop, and so secure the hasp to the lock, the ring e being moved at the same time by the catch. If now the ring e is revolved by hand to actuate the catch g the nose 03 will be first removed from the loop, and then the inclined abutment g4 will operate against the back of the loop to start the positive disengagement of the hasp from the lock.

Having now described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A fastening of the kind described, comprising a, rigid hasp, a lug carried by the hasp, a lock casing having an open side to receive the lug, a slidable member guided in said casing and being disposed with one edge thereof adjacent said open side to be displaced by the lug entering the casing, a pivoted catch carried on said slidable member adjacent the open side of said casing to be swung into engagement with said lug when said slidable member is inwardly displaced, means for holding said catch out of engagement with said lug while said slidable member is in its outermost position, hand-operated means projecting to the exterior of said casing for moving said slidable member from its innermost to its outermost position, and a spring within'said casing to normally hold said slidable member in its innermost position when said catch engages said lug.

2. A fastening, as claimed in claim 1, in which said hand-operated means includes a revoluble element on the exterior of the casing, and a stud fixed on said revoluble element and projecting through an arcuate slot in the casing into a transverse slot provided in said slidable member.

3. A fastening, as claimed in claim 1, in which said hand-operated means includes a revoluble element on the exterior of the casing, and a stud fixed on said revoluble element and projecting through an arcuate slot in the casing into a transverse slot provided in said slidable member, said spring cooperating with said stud to hold it normally in a position in which said slidable member is withdrawn from the open side of said casing.

4. A fastening, as claimed in claim 1, in which a second catch is pivoted to said slidable member, adjacent the open side of said casing to be swung into engagement with said lug in a direction opposite to .that of said first catch, when said slidable member is inwardly displaced.

CHARLES WILLIAM CHENEY. 

